Dr. Neal Barnard’s newest book, The Vegan Starter Kit is a great introduction to vegan eating if you’re still teetering on the edge! And it's the perfect invitation to healthy eating for your not-yet-vegan friends.

You can read it in 45 minutes and it will give you confidence in getting started, with a step-by-step method for changing your eating habits, guidelines for complete nutrition, quick-reference charts, tips for modifying recipes, and dozens of quick and easy meals.

Former triathlete Rip Esselstyn went to work at the Engine 2 fire station - and found a coworker with very high cholesterol. This led to a bet: if Rip's colleague would just eat what Rip told him to eat, he could cut his cholesterol in half in just 28 days.

The challenge was accepted, and this is how the lowfat plant-strong Engine 2 Diet was born!

Why Does the Nut Industry Spend Tens of Millions to Fund Nut Research?

Some people have fallen for nut industry-funded junk science.

It may not be their fault though. They're being duped or perhaps are merely sloppy, or are okay relying on very weak evidence to make their points.

There may be one or two credible nut studies that suggest some modest health benefits to nuts - beyond the benefits you would expect of any plant food. But there clearly is no persuasive body of evidence suggesting nuts are critical for excellent health.

Today we take a deep dive into how nut industry-funded science - is as dodgy as can be.

I don't avoid nuts myself and am not telling people to avoid them. But some people do avoid nuts - perhaps they gain weight with nuts, or have a nut allergy, or otherwise don't like nuts. If someone avoids nuts, they will not be missing out in any way. And their health won't be compromised in any way. Nuts are optional and not shown to be crucial or magical to health - in any way.